Protective Instincts
by Darkflames and fire
Summary: After the super-powered children are stolen by Mala and The Brain, it's up to Raven and Beastboy to get them back. With the combination of demon and animal instincts kicking in, along with the appearance of Raven's brother, the two teens are set for an adventure they won't forget.
1. Chapter 1

This is my first request story. I hope you enjoy this 'dreddnot'. It may be a while in between chapters. I have a busy life. I tried keeping Raven in character, but she is probably slightly OOC. Sorry about that.

READ ON!

Disclaimer: The day I own Teen Titans is the day Kim Kardashian becomes a hobo.

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Raven watched as the monks walked away with Melvin, Timmy, and Teether. She tried to hold in her emotions, which had become more... active (for lack of a better word) in the company of the children. Feelings she had never wanted to think about again were trying to surface, and she was quickly trying to reign in her other sides residing in Nevermore. Suddenly, as if they were just turned on, her empathy senses detected a familiar presence to her right side.

"What are you doing here, Beastboy?" she asked, confused at his sudden appearance

"Robin wanted me to check on you. It was probably just an excuse to get away from me." was Beastboy's nervous reply. He didn't want Raven to know that he really had asked (More pleading than asking) Robin permission to go check on her.

"Sorry he didn't want your help." Raven said quietly. Her feelings for the green shape-shifter were beginning to surface, and they automatically made her feel bad that Robin had sent him away.

"Doesn't matter. I get to spend time with a pretty girl." Beastboy said, blushing. He had developed feelings for Raven during their first year as Teen Titans. They were usually well-hidden under his jokes toward her, but now they just seemed to be showing through. Just as Raven turned to him in shock with a question on her lips, they heard an explosion from the direction the kids had went.

"Hold that thought." Beastboy said, starting to run towards the source of the sound. Raven passed him, flying, and Beastboy followed her as a Raven. (ever notice he turns into a Raven in the show a lot?)

Upon reaching the source of the noise, the two youngest Titans only found a large crater. Raven dropped to her knees. She felt weak, like she was going to cry. She just watched helplessly as Beastboy dropped into the hole to look around. They were gone, her 'kids', gone...*

She was brought back to reality by a shout of "Hey, Rae. You've gotta see this."

She wouldn't have gone if it weren't for the fact that Beastboy had said it in a rare serious voice. Upon finding him it was discovered that Beastboy had found a note. She nearly ran over to him to read from over his shoulder.

* * *

The note read:

Dearest Raven,

Do not worry for your kids, for I have them in our luxurious care. They will be taken care of thoroughly without you here to disrupt my plans. Return to your leader with your failures.

Sincerely,

Mala and The Brain

* * *

Taken care of. Those words rang around in Raven's head like bad music. Increasing the volume in a growing crescendo of horror. There was a time when the horrible sounds were so mind-rattlingly loud that she thought Beastboy could hear it.

Then, it fully hit her. The emotional impact hit her like a train, and she fell to the ground. Raven choked back a sob, and tears sprung to her eyes. Those children... HER children, they were too young for this. Not even eight and already taken hostage in a life-or-death situation.

Beastboy held out his hand to help her up, but when she took it, he came down and embraced her in a tight hug.

"Don't worry, Rae. We'll save them." he said with determination in his voice.

Raven believed him, and stood up with new-found strength, wiping tears from her eyes. Beastboy gave her a sad smile, and she returned with one as well.

"We need to drop of the grid if we're going to get them with a surprise." Beastboy said. "There is less of a chance they will catch wind of us that way." Raven nodded at the logic, knowing what they were going to do. Her emotions had ceased action for now, and she would take full advantage of that.

Beastboy tossed off the belt he wore around his waist and threw his communicator into the crater, effectively ending any and all way of contact with the Titans until him and Raven wanted it. Raven did the same, taking off her brooch and tossing her communicator next to his. They sat in the dirt of the crater, a sign they wouldn't come back.

The green boy turned to the half-demon and gave a small sigh.

"You ready for this, Rae?" he asked, referring to the journey they were about to set off on. She merely nodded, looking to the distant mountains with determination.

"Yeah. I'm going to find them. We're going to find them."

* * *

*Raven calls them 'my kids' at the end of the episode. I immediately imagined her and Beastboy taking care of them.

Ok, I'm sorry that it's short, but it's merely the prologue, don't worry. The other chapters should be longer. Read and review, especially you, Dreddnot.


	2. Chapter 2

Darkflame: Sorry for not updating. Nobody reviewed so we forgot. An awesome person by the name of madman42 reminded him to get himself together and write it, so thank him.

Blitz: Yup! And to dreddnot (if you still read this, we understand if you hate us) sorry for it taking so long. We'll be updating faster now that the new quarter has started, and we get out early for exams all this week!

Darkflame: We do not own Teen Titans. If we did, most of our Fanfics would be episodes.

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"So where are we even supposed to go?" Raven asked, acting out of character, as her and Beastboy sat below a tree. They were just getting their thoughts together before setting off on their journey, and Raven brought up the problem that's been bothering her for a while. Beastboy looked up from messing with his gloves, debating whether to take them off or not.

"There's an odd scent coming from that way." the green boy said, pointing behind himself. "It's definitely not human, but it's not animal either. I think it could be a minion waiting for us."

"How could you possibly hypothesize that?" Raven asked, put off by his vague reasoning. Beastboy looked thoughtful for a moment, trying to put his reasoning into words.

"Do you know anybody else on the planet that's a demon?" he asked, hinting at the scent he found. Raven seemed shocked.

"There's a demon waiting for us?" she asked, shocked that any would dare come to earth after she banished Trigon. Beastboy nodded glumly.

"Yeah. Definitely not looking forward to that fight." he replied, shuddering. "Aren't they usually powerful?" Raven nodded.

"Most are extremely powerful, but we should be fine so long as it's not one more powerful than me." she told him, standing up. "Let's go beat the info out of him and get the kids." She levitated herself up and over the trees immediately after she finished her sentence, and Beastboy quickly followed after changing into a raven.

They flew in silence for the short distance they were moving, but Raven did blush and quickly look away when she saw the form he had chosen to take for their flight. When they were becoming close to the waiting enemy, Raven hung back while Beastboy flew a few circles around the clearing he stood in, scoping him out. Beastboy came back and him and Raven landed just outside the clearing.

"He's just kind of sitting in the middle of the field." Beastboy told her, motioning to the man's general direction. "He's wearing all black and a hood, but from what I can make out he'll be pretty tall." Raven thought for a moment. He didn't sound like any demon she remembered.

"Let's just go then." she told the changeling, annoyed at the lack of information he was able to retrieve. "It's not like we can really get any information about him from here, and I don't remember any of my father's subjects ever sounding like that."

"Alright. Let's go." the changeling said confidently.

(Prepare for the awesomeness of a true demon...)

They walked through the brush without much care to the noise they made, making sure to remain alert to their own surroundings, just in case. The clearing was bathed in beautiful moonlight as they came through the brush, and Brain's (Blitz: Somebody please tell us if he has another name. We don't know if he does...) minion was sitting in the center, where the light was just in between too bright and too dark. He sat in front of rose bushes, which mutated the flowers and made the petals turn black due to the dark power he emitted.

The strange enemy stood up as the two Titans entered, looking quite eerie with his large height and slim build. Darkness appeared to be writhing in physical form around his body, taking the appearance of shadowy tendrils. The black sweatshirt he wore was completely clean, save for some rips throughout the fabric, and he appeared to be wearing pants similar to Beastboy's, so that they wouldn't flap around during combat.

"**Titans**." he greeted respectfully, bowing in an oddly Victorian manor. "**Honor to meet you**."

"Cut the formalities." Raven replied in a hostile voice. "I want to know where my kids are."

Beastboy didn't speak, and simply backed up her words with a growl.

"**I see... that's disappointing. It's quite rude to pick a fight without introduction, wouldn't you say, Garfield?**" the man asked, his face still well hidden by the shadows his hood created, though the two superheroes he was speaking to could hear the sadistic joy his voice carried... along with the moonlight brightly reflecting on his teeth, which held the sharp upper canines of a true night walker. (Night walkers include: Demons, Vampires, or anything of that sort)

Beastboy backed up, if only slightly at the mention of his true name. Raven seemed confused, as she didn't know Beastboy's real name. The changeling's eyes narrowed, anger and confusion swirling around in his head.

"How do you know that name?" he asked in a deadly whisper, his voice becoming rough and with a hint of a growl as the animal instincts kicked in. The strangers teeth were shown brightly in another sadistic grin.

"**It's none of your concern to hold any secrets in my presence, Mr. Logan...**" he told the changeling, seemingly disappearing from thin air at the last part, and reappearing, whispering in Beastboy's ear not a second later. "_**... I already know everything****.**_" he finished, laughing like a maniac as the angered and shocked teen took a swipe at him with his claws. He disappeared again, popping back up in his original position. It all happened so quickly that Raven had hardly even realized the exchange had gone on, until she heard the stranger's laugh.

"Who are you?" she asked, almost... **_almost_**... afraid of the man whom they faced. Said enemy chuckled a bit before bursting into a maniac and extreme fit of laughter. Raven growled. "What's so funny!?" she shouted, peeved as he laughed at her. The laughing stopped almost immediately, once again making everything seem scarier than it had a right to.

"**Why? You ask me why I laugh**?" he asked, sounding quite a bit more deadly without the entertainment in his voice. The two teens were relieved when it came back. "**Why... I laugh because you already know me, milady.**" he finished, bowing again as he said 'milady'. The hood finally came off of his head, revealing a shockingly familiar shade of purple hair, grey skin, and violet eyes.

Raven breathed out a gasp of shock and fear.

"Nightingale." she whispered.

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Blitz: Epically sorry for not updating in forever! Ideas for this story had run dry, but to make up for it, we'll try to get another chapter or two before the weekend's over.

Darkflame: And yes we realize they are somewhat OOC, but what do you expect, it's pretty hard to write Raven going after the kids while remaining emotionless.

Blitz: And who is this shocking (yeah right) Nightingale character? Unless you already know him, in which case, you already know that he's a badass.

Darlflame: Read and review. It makes the author realize he has to update.

Blitz: Also, Nightingale's text will be normal next chapter now that we know who he is. It was just to add to the mystery.


	3. Chapter 3

Blitz: Hey! Sorry for the long wait! Our computer broke.

Darkflame: And I *sigh* announce mail call. Joy *sarcasm*.

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madman42: "Thanks for calling me awesome! :D More soon please!"

Blitz: No problem! Here's more for ya!

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Katwizzle: "it that her brother or something? cant wait for the next chapter!"

Darkflame: Guess you'll find out in this chapter.

Blitz: Thanks for the support!

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Curse you Perry the Platypus: "O poop an OC * said in an impressed tone, not frustrated tone*"

Blitz: Glad you're not mad that we put an OC in there!

Darkflame: He has more impressive things to show in this chapter as well.

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tatia(guest): wow i cant wait for the next chapter its intense i liked it update soon:)

Blitz: Thanks for the nice comment!

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Blitz: We do not own Teen Titans. Nightingale would be a character if we did.

Note: For all those interested in Nightingale (Alucard and Nuit) and his character after this chapter, the author highly recommends going to his profile and finding "Birth of the Nightingale" which is the beginning of a series explaining him and his life to his current integration into the author's stories.

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Last chapter...

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"Why? You ask me why I laugh?" he asked, sounding quite a bit more deadly without the entertainment in his voice. The two teens were relieved when it came back. "Why... I laugh because you already know me, milady." he finished, bowing again as he said 'milady'. The hood finally came off of his head, revealing a shockingly familiar shade of purple hair, grey skin, and violet eyes.

Raven breathed out a gasp of shock and fear.

"Nightingale." she whispered.

* * *

"R-Rae." Beastboy stuttered out. "Wh-Who is guy?" he asked, backing up as he smelled killing intent begin to radiate off of the demon in waves. Raven was still gaping at Nightingale, apparently shocked. She collected herself after a moment and spoke to her companion without taking her eyes off of the other male standing in front of the roses.

"My older brother."

Nightingale smiled wider, moonlight glinting against his fangs.

"Why all the hate, Raven? Aren't you happy to see big brother Nightingale?" the demon asked, his jovial tone making Beastboy shudder. This action attracted Nightingale's attention, and Raven's older brother gave the changeling a wink. "Are you scared, little changeling?"

"N-No." Beastboy replied meekly, the lie fooling neither of the two demons in the clearing. Raven seemed genuinely scared as well, though she attempted to attack without alerting her brother.

The twig moved silently through the air, on a course for the tall demon's head. His hair turned black, and his eyes faded to a crimson and bloody red the moment before impact. He dodged smoothly, without even looking as his head turned to avoid the blow. His right arm shot out straight to his side, making a grabbing motion in the air with his large fist. The hilt of a sword appeared in his hand, pure black. He rotated his hand, a small portion of blade forming out of the shadows that writhed around him.

With his pointer and middle fingers pointing straight up, his ring and pinky fingers down, and his thumb tucked against the side of his hand and bending to make an 'L', the demon places his upright fingers on the portion of sword that had formed. With a mechanical sliding motion, he dragged his hand slowly to the left, forming a sword that was pure black from tip to hilt, five-and-a-half feet long. (pretty much just an oversized katana)

"I'm afraid I cannot allow you to leave this clearing alive." Nightingale said lazily, holding his sword in a ready position, and sporting a bloodthirsty smile. "Prepare to die, fledgelings."

The last sentence snapped Raven out of whatever fear she had.

"Beastboy." she called out, not taking her eyes off of the imposing demon in front of them.

"Yeah, Rae?"

"That's not Nightingale. We have slightly less to fear." she said, muttering an enchantment under her breath.

"You serious?" Beastboy asked. He narrowed his eyes at the enemy, trying to discern how the disguise he was wearing worked. Meanwhile, Raven was already nearly finished with her spell.

"Azerath Metrion Zinthos!" she shouted, waving her hand as it glowed with her power's usual eerie light. 'Nightingale' was also bathed in the dark aura, as it stripped off the disguise magic.

The new person standing before them looked nearly the same, but his eyes turned red and his hair faded to black. His clothes changed to a skin-tight black t-shirt, straight black jeans, and some fingerless gloves on his hands. He still gripped the sword, and brought it down to tap the steel toe of his boots, the small sound ringing clearly through the forest clearing. He laughed for a bit, the deep and insane tones chilling the two teens facing him.

"It looks as if the fledgelings have exposed my little ruse." he commented, bringing his sword into a ready position. "Prepare to die, Titans."

"R-Rae... What's going on here?" Beastboy asked in a panic, tensing his muscles in preparation to dodge. Raven readied her powers as well, replying quickly.

"My brother Nightingale had his mind split into three seperate entities. Meet Alucard, vampire-demon."

Alucard showed his teeth again, eyes glowing a bit brighter as the full moon rose.

"I say again," he chuckled out. "Prepare to die."

With that, Alucard charged.

* * *

The fire burned brightly, the only light in the room. Two figures sat on the couch, both wrapped in a warm blanket and cuddling close together as they read their separate books. The girl's head rested on the man's chest, listening to his steady heartbeat that was slowly lulling her to sleep as the words melded together on the pages.

She placed her bookmark and placed her copy of "Shadowmarch" down on the table that was next to the arm of the couch. Her companion raised his eyes from "Romeo and Juliet" to look at her curiously.

"Tired?" his deep voice rumbled, making his chest vibrate and soothing her even more.

"Mhmm." she sighed, rolling over so that she was laying with her chest resting on his. She buried her face into the crook of his neck, inhaling the soothing scent and sighing. She moved lower and rested her head on his chest again, eyes slowly closing. He placed a soft kiss on her head before she could fall asleep.

"I love you." he whispered to her. She heard, and allowed a content smile to grace her features.

"I love you too" she told him back. He stiffened, and when she was about to ask if she had said something wrong he spoke.

"Alucard is causing trouble." He said monotonously. She nodded.

"Open the rift, you can stop him." she stated, giving him the permission he always wanted.

He nodded, placing her to the side and off his lap as he rose from the couch. He reached into a shadow created by the light of the fire, and she watched with interest as it rippled like water and he pulled a sword from it. Slashing the sword through the air created a rip in reality that sucked the light from the room. He reached for her hand, and she took it, smiling softly. They stepped in together.

"Here we go."

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Raven blocked the first strike with one of her shields, which shattered immediately and left the sword sailing towards her head. Beastboy yanked her out of the way in time, ducking under a fist half-heartedly thrown his way.

"The brain sends his regards!" Alucard shouted, slashing again, to which the two teens dodged. Raven's shields did nothing, and Beastboy didn't have the time to switch. The deadly dance continued for a good fifteen minutes until the Teens stood at the other end of the clearing from Alucard, exhausted. The vampire-demon wasn't even slightly winded.

He jumped for the final strike.

Beastboy and Raven clung to each other tightly, closing their eyes.

"Goodbye, fledglings!"

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Blitz: YAY! We got another chapter finished!

Darkflame: yeah, whoo *sarcasm*.

Blitz: Please drop reviews so we can keep this going!


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